Method statement
Safe system of work statement
The step-by-step description of how a task will be done: sequence, people, plant, access, controls and what happens if something changes.
A method statement turns the controls in a risk assessment into a sequence a supervisor can run. It names the site, the task, the dates, the people and their roles, the plant and equipment, the access and egress, the sequence of operations from set-up to clear-away, the specific controls at each step, the PPE, the emergency arrangements and the person in charge. Where the assessment says "exclusion zone maintained", the method statement says where the barriers go, who puts them out and who checks them.
It is written by someone who knows how the job will actually be done, ideally the supervisor, and it is briefed to the gang before they start. It is not a legal document in itself, but principal contractors treat it as the contractor's promise of how the work will be managed, and it is the first thing read after an incident. If the work changes on the day, the method statement is amended and re-briefed, or the work stops; carrying on outside the method statement is the definition of an unsafe system of work.
Where it comes from
- Construction (Design and Management) Regulations 2015 reg.15: the contractor's duty to plan, manage and monitor.
- Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 s.2(2)(a): the provision and maintenance of safe systems of work.
Questions people ask
What is the difference between a method statement and a risk assessment?
The risk assessment identifies hazards and decides the controls. The method statement describes how the work will be done so those controls are in place at each step. One is the analysis; the other is the plan. Together they are the RAMS.
Can I use the same method statement on every job?
You can start from the same one. Every job needs the site, the dates, the people, the access and the specific sequence changed to fit, or it is not a method statement for that job, and the principal contractor will send it back.
Method statement, handled on a phone
SiteLynx puts the RAMS, permits, inspections, audits, plant checks and records behind every term in this glossary on the crew's phones, signed on site, with a PDF at the end. 14 days free, no card.
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